


The House on Helios Hill

by Esperosis



Series: Shadowfear-art AUs [2]
Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: (of animals), Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Character tags and other Tags will be added as the story progresses, Exorcisms, Ghost Hunters, Ghosts, Jack is a ghost, M/M, Nisha is a ghost hunter, Possession, Rhys is a ghostlet, Supernatural Elements, Tim is just a guy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-07
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2018-12-12 13:39:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11738208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Esperosis/pseuds/Esperosis
Summary: Rumors surround the house on Helios Hill and its former resident Handsome Jack, who died in a tragic fire. Most of these rumors, however, concern all of the wax statues of missing residents that appear inside the mansion's walls. However, a weary traveler that gets lost in a blizzard knows none of these rumors and stumbles inside...[Currently on Hiatus, Unlikely to continue]





	1. The Wax Ghost of Helios Hill

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone looks like I am starting a new project.  
> Well not only is this a new project but its another au by shadowfear-art  
> Please do check out their Tumblr down below!  
> http://shadowfear-art.tumblr.com/

Due to the many mysterious deaths that occur inside the house on Helios Hill, many rumors surround the mansion. Some think it's a very elaborate serial killer, others say it's a cult, but the most popular story is that it's haunted by the former owner of the mansion, Handsome Jack.

Handsome Jack was an evil man, he was cruel and ruthless and would do anything he needed to to get what he wanted. He was the CEO of the top weapons company called Hyperion and ran it with an iron fist. He was not mourned by the people of the town nor the employees of his company when the west wing of his house caught ablaze with him inside. The fire was put out, and both the people and his company moved on without so much as a second thought.

However, people did begin to think twice once the deaths started to occur inside the mansion’s walls. One night a group of drunken teenagers wandered into the now abandoned estate, and when the sun rose the following day again, all of them were dead. While tragic, the mysterious part wasn't that they died, it was how they died. When the police arrived at the mansion to investigate the missing teens, they found them, in the form of wax statues. The cops ran a thorough investigation on how this was possible but came up with nothing.

Over time more and more people walked into the mansion and were turned to wax statues, their faces contorted in horror they felt in their last moments. And as time went on the police still couldn't figure out how this was happening, nor find who was doing it. They eventually sealed off the mansion so that no one else would fall victim to this mystery killer. 

While sealing off the mansion stopped people from exploring, for the most part, it only encouraged people to discuss whatever was happening in the estate. Most blamed the ghost of Handsome Jack, enraged for the town’s reaction to his death. Others said it was because his death was so sudden that his spirit couldn't move on. More speculated that he was protective of his mansion and became enraged when the original victims entered his estate. 

However, while everyone speculated and guessed at why the ghost was haunting the mansion, there were no definitive answers. The spirit that laid inside Helios Hill seemed content to stay inside the mansion’s walls and wait for unlucky souls to wander inside his domain. 

However, as time progressed fewer and fewer people chanced a journey into the mansion. Whether it was because of the high risk of death, or the police that were periodically stationed outside its gates, travelers stopped coming. All was quiet inside the mansion’s walls for the longest time, until one cold winter night.

It was a terrible blizzard; the snow was high as it came from the sky in a torrent, making it impossible to see. A weary man with a broken arm and a missing eye stumble up to the mansion’s gate, desperate for any shelter. He had gotten lost in the snow before the blizzard, and fell off of a cliff as he tried to find his way back. He awoke from his fall hours after nightfall and covered in snow as it battered him from every angle. He felt along the trees, frozen to the bone as he searched for a light in an unforgiving storm. 

It was an hour before he finally found the mansion, and managed to stumble up to its front door. He was trembling as he grabbed the door and ripped it open, collapsing inside in a frozen heap. After laying on the ground for a moment, he tried his best to stand, only able to make it to his knees.He pushed the door shut, breathing heavily against it for a few minutes, before calling into the mansion,  
“H-H-Hello?” 

He looked around awaiting a response but receiving none. He crawled on his stomach to the staircase, noticing the thick layer of dust on the floor and he came to the realization that the mansion was abandoned. He used as much strength as he could muster to drag himself up the staircase in an attempt to get to a bedroom where he could find blankets and warmth. He drug himself as far as he could but could only get up the ten steps to the first landing on the staircase. He let out a huff as he laid there, before finally giving up trying to move up the stairs and curled up in the corner on the staircase, shivering violently.

It was at this moment when the ghost finally decided that this was the perfect place for the newest addition to his collection. While he had gotten angry when those filthy teenagers and delinquents thought they could break into his house, he had to admit he’d gotten bored. He silently made his descent down the staircase and began to loom over the shivering mess that had just crawled in from the snow. As he got a closer look, he had to admit that the man wasn’t hard on the eyes. Yes, he’d be an excellent addition to his collection.

The forgotten ghost of wax began to start the process of turning the man below him the wax, pouring hot wax onto the man. As the first of the wax oozed onto the man’s head, he let out a loud gasp, and his eyes shot open staring at the ghost in surprise. The spirit quickly descended upon the man, splashing thick wax over his knees and feet so he couldn't run, they always tried to run.

However something extraordinary happened as the ghost stared maliciously into the man’s eye, he smiled at him. The trembling man lifted his working hand and took the ghost's hand in his, dragging it toward him as he whispered,  
“You’re warm, thank you,” the smiling man then slowly closed his eye as the wax poured down his face, and stilled.

The ghost stared at the corpse of the man for hours as the wax smoothed out and hardened around the man, immortalizing the man’s smile. The spirit just couldn’t understand why the man reacted the way he did. They always screamed when they saw him; they always tried to run, their looks of horror were all that ever remained. But not him, not this man, this man would be smiling forever, on his staircase.

The ghost finally decided that he liked the man’s smile, it was pleasant and simple, and it made the whole room brighten in a way it hadn’t since the fire. Jack caught himself smiling as he finally rose from the man’s statute.

He let out a chuckle and shook his head as he turned up the staircase to head back to the east wing. However, as he turned around, he was greeted with a very small wax ghostling. It was tiny, about the size of his hand, it had a glob of wax covering its left eye and a flame sprouting from the top of its head. It had two little stub arms, and the bottom of its torso spiraled out into a small inward-facing tail.

The ghost froze, trying to process what was in front of him. As the spirit processed the ghostlet, the tiny thing opened its mouth letting out a happy little “oo” sound.  
“What the fuck?”


	2. New "Friends"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack decides to learn a bit more about his new housemate and their current predicament.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo guys, fancy seeing ya’ll again,
> 
> Anyway to the point, sorry about that whole absence for like almost a year. Basically for about 2 months or so I was completely swamped and stressed out and couldn't work on any fics, but then, I finally was able to catch my breath again. However, by that point, I slipped into the “Well its been so long people prob don't care anymore anyway” mentality and start prioritizing other stuff over fic writing and one thing lead to another and It just never got done.
> 
> However, someone recently messaged me asking if I was planning to update my fics anytime soon. That was kinda a kick in the butt for me saying “Oh, someone is still interested” so I’m now going to start getting back to work on writing, this time instead of posting chapters when I get them done as I did in the past, they will become out on a weekly basis. That way if I’m supper productive for a few days and then not for like 2 weeks, chapters will still come out on a regular basis. Also, if you are confused at why I am not updating or if you are curious about when I will be updating next, do ask! I love getting asked things, so never feel even slightly bad about messaging me or sending me an ask, it actually really helps motivate me.
> 
> TL;DR: I am back

The blizzard eventually died down, but the confusion jack felt over the strange predicament he found himself did not lessen. The dead man floated about a once comfy armchair, now reduced to a deflated wax covered mess. Jack stared at the tiny little ghostlet as it happily floated around the living room occasionally making sounds and giggling as it examined rusted statues and faded pictures.

Jack had never really cared about what happened in the outside world, he supposed it came with the territory of dying, but now he feels a pang of regret because maybe if he had cared a bit more, Jack would know more about the situation he now finds himself in. Jack scowled, he hadn't been this mad since he died, but Jack wasn't sure if he was angry at his new housemate or whatever cosmic force caused this to happen. He supposed it didn't matter, either way, all that mattered now was getting this pest out of his house and onto the great beyond.

He was distracted from his thoughts however by something poking his cheek repeatedly. He spun around ready to burn whatever it was, only to find the little ghost smiling at him with his tiny nub arms outstretched.  
"Oooou" the tiny thing chirped.  
"Yes I know, hi, you've said that like ten times, what the heck is wrong with you cupcake? Has death made you go dumb or something?" Jack replied slightly annoyed at being rudely interrupted. Jack just shook his head, then narrowed his eyes turning to the ghostlet once again.  
"What's your name?"  
"Ouuuooo" the ghostlet happily chirped in reply  
"Rheese??" Jack frowned, what a stupid name. The ghostlet frowned slightly before putting a lot more effort into repeating himself,  
"oUUUooo"  
"Rhys?" He tried again; it wasn't much better if he was honest.  
"O" The ghostlet, Rhys, happily bounced around, spinning around Jack's head a few times before settling down in front of him.

"Ok then, next question, if you think your tiny little brain can handle it pumpkin," Rhys just smiled at him, either not caring about the insult or not understanding it. Jack just shook his head and continued,  
"Why were you outside in the snow? That blizzard was pretty bad," he eyed out the window behind them, the snow piled up against the walls at least two feet. However, instead of the long-winded explanation, he was expecting, Rhys merely cocked his head and gave him a somewhat confused expression.  
"Wait wait wait, hold up a second. You do remember being outside in the snow last night, right?" Rhys continued to stare at him,  
"Well do you at least remember dying?" he tried.  
"U?" Rhys slowly replied, "OOOooouUuo?"  
"Are you telling me you don't even know what dying is??"  
Rhys just continued to float in front of him, now somewhat concerned. Jack just huffed and grabbed the tiny thing with his hand and began bringing him to the staircase.

He finally let him go once they arrived at the first landing of the staircase, directly in front of Rhys' corpse, now encased in wax. The ghostlet cautiously approached his body and unreadable expression on its face.  
"That," Jack pointed at the statue, "Is your corpse, its the body you leave behind after you die, got it cupcake?"

Rhys slowly turned around to look at the elder spirit his face unreadable, before breaking out into a wide grin and quickly floating upward to circle Jack some more.  
"OuuuooooUo"  
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T CARE! YOU'RE DEAD! YOU SHO-" Jack cut himself off from yelling, pinching the bridge of his nose, trembling. Rhys decided that it was best to leave his housemate alone, for the time being, and began to float off done to the east wing.

Before he was able to advance any further than a foot he was roughly grabbed in Jack's hand as he took a long and deep breath and held the small spirit to his face, so they were making eyehole to eyeless face contact.  
"Why are you not mad about dying?" Jack said in a rather low growl. Rhys, slightly intimidated at this point, was aware exactly how tight the man's grip on him was, and how low his voice was getting. He didn't quite understand what the man was saying, but he knew he needed to give him the right answer. Quite a bit of the ghostlet's wax form squeezed out of him in the time it took for him to formulate a reply,

"Oooooooouoouuuu" Rhys replied cautiously,  
"You don't remember being alive at all? You only remember appearing last night?" Jack was taken aback by this, he remembered being alive and hadn't experienced such as issue before, why was this happening to this spirit?  
Rhys timidly nodded,  
"Ooouuo"  
"I guess it does make sense then, if you don't remember being alive, learning that you died wouldn't really that bothering..." Jack trailed off; this situation was getting weirder and weirder.

First, he was stuck with a permanent resident in his house. Then it turns out this spirit doesn't remember anything about his previous life at all. This wasn't normal for ghosts, at least he didn't think so, then again maybe this was normal, and he was the weird one. Jack once again began kicking himself for not paying any attention to the outside world. If only he had watched a few more ghost shows or went to a palm reader or something when he was alive, maybe he'd know what the hell is going on with his weird ass after life. But he didn't, and here he was, up shit creek without a paddle, and with an annoying little pest that won't stop tucking at his hair, speaking of which.

Jack finally began viciously shooing Rhys from his hair, Rhys quietly giggled at Jack's annoyed yelling.  
"So!" Jack said clapping his hands together loudly, making Rhys jump slightly, "Here's what's going to happen now. Neither of us knows who you are, or why your here, and to be frank, I don't give a shit 'kay pumpkin? But here's the thing, you're in my house, and I don't really want you to be here, I'm quite happy on my own so! Your taking to the first trip to the afterlife I can find got it!" Jack announced to the little ghost.  
Rhys happily trilled as he zipped around the room. Jack narrowed his eyes a bit, confused at the reaction before realizing what just happened.

Rhys doesn't understand what he just said, only that he was super passionate about it. Jack shrugged, he didn't care about Rhys' opinion on the matter, he would be gone as soon as Jack could figure out how to remove him anyway. What a headache.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for the long wait, but here it is, and you can count on weekly updates from now on.


	3. Accidents and Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack has to head back into the depths of the mansion due to it being night time while Rhys decides to surprise his new friend by cleaning the kitchen.

Jack wanted to get rid of Rhys right away. Unfortunately, he came across a bit of a snag in his plans, namely the sun. After watching Rhys float around the foyer sporadically for a good 10 minutes, making sure he didn't break anything, he decided if Jack couldn't figure out anything about Rhys from the internet or TV, he might as well check the library. However as he began to make his way down the Eastwing's central corridor, a wave of exhaustion hit him like a brick wall. He looked out the window and sure enough, the sun was beginning to rise.

Jack let out a growl, he was not keen on leaving his new house guest alone in the mansion for an entire day, but he was even less keen on being significantly weakened in the case that another straggler made their way into his house. He glared at the sun as if he stared hard enough it would retreat into the heavens. But alas the giant fiery bastard keep rising and being a general pain in the ass.

Jack begrudgingly made his way back to the foyer only to find Rhys had utterly disappeared from the area. Great. That was just peachy. The little idiot could be anywhere, and Jack was getting weaker by the minute. Jack let out a loud yell of pure frustration and made his way back to the east wing and hid away in the old guest room that he had converted into his new place since his had been destroyed by the fire. He tucked away in the shadows of the room and silently prayed that the ghost wouldn't get into too much trouble while he slept.

Rhys jumped backward as several pots and pans he had been investigating fell over onto the floor with a loud crash. Rhys had gotten bored of just floating around in the foyer and decided to wander around the main floor. He was sure his new friend wouldn't mind. The kitchen was rather large, with a walk-in refrigerator, at least five stoves, and an oven built into the wall. It would all be rather impressive if it weren't covered in a thick layer of dust and rust. Rhys could also spot several rats and mold coming from the drawers and sink.

Rhys tilted his head in confusion. This place could look so lovely with a bit of cleaning! But instead, his friend, who he still didn't know the name of, had just let it go to ruin! Rhys didn't know why he didn't clean it up a bit, he didn't strike Rhys as the kind of guy to just let his home get messy, and he was a lot bigger than Rhys, couldn't he have just cleaned everything?

Though Rhys was kind of happy he didn't, this would be Rhys' first job as a new guest! His friend didn't seem to like him that much now, but Rhys knew if he cleaned up, he would see how cool Rhys was and they would be besties forever. Rhys let out a determined huff and nodded his head, operation "Clean the Kitchen" would now commence!

The first thing to do is get rid of that mold. However, Rhys quickly realized he had no idea what he was doing as he stared at the black mold growing in the sink. He narrowed his eyes, contemplating what he could do, the only source of light in the room being the flickering of the fire atop his head. Rhys looked up, the fire moving with his head. Of course! He'll burn it!

Rhys tried to pat himself on the back for the great idea, but his little stubby nub arms would not allow it, so he just imagined he was doing it, which was good enough. Rhys then floated down into the sink and tilted his head, so the flames licked the black mold. Rhys sat like this for around five minutes before checking his progress. The mold had begun to burn away slightly, but the flame just wasn't strong enough to do anything useful.

Rhys pouted a bit, before deciding that maybe, if he just tried really really hard, the fire would get a bit bigger and he could use it to clean the kitchen. Rhys once again tilted his head so the flames reached the mold, and concentrated as hard as he could on making the fire bigger.

Rhys only hear a loud whooshing sound, and then everything became really bright. He sat there in the brightness confused for a second before floating away to see what happened.

The entire sink was on fire.

That's not what he meant to do! That's not went he meant to do at all!

Rhys immediately panicked, frantically searching for any water to put out the fire, but finding none. He quickly grabbed a glass to try and fill it with water to put out the fire but realized he wasn't going to be able to because the sink was on fire. Rhys' panic began to quickly rise as he looked for any solution to the mess he made but found none. The flames were starting to spread to the counter, and the walls and Rhys knew it would soon engulf the whole kitchen. Rhys began to sob as the fires grew and grew, he just wanted to help! Why wouldn't the fire just stop? And as if responding to his command, the flames immediately vanished.

Rhys floated in the middle of the kitchen in confusion as waxy tears continued rolling down his face. He began processing what had just happened: he created a sizeable fire, then stopped it by just telling it to stop? Rhys slowly made his way to the sink, finding that the fire had indeed disappeared without a trace.

On the bright side, the mold was gone! However the sink, wall, and counter near it now had sizable scorched marks.

Rhys figured this was an even trade off and immediately began giggling at how good of a job he had done in cleaning all the mold away! Rhys spent the next hour moving around the kitchen setting everything on fire and then dispersing the flames, humming a tune he didn't quite remember himself. All was going well until he finished with cleaning the mold and moved onto the next cleaning task, cleaning all the ash.

From his burning of mold and moldy food he had accumulated a lot of ash in the kitchen, and he needed to figure out how to clean it as well. He looked around the kitchen and found several rags and a duster, Rhys smiled knowing exactly what to do. Rhys carefully using his wax tail set out the rags on the floor and began brushing the ash off the shelves and onto the rags on the floor. It was a long and challenging process, and quite a lot of ash wound up on the floor, but after a half hour of awkwardly sweeping the duster with his tail, he managed to get a large pile of ash onto the rag.

Rhys then carefully attempted to cover the pile with the corners of the rag and began to lift it. He couldn't lift it. It was too heavy. As Rhys started to try and figure out what he could do to rectify this problem several rats closed in on him and the sack. Rhys let out a squeak as the rat jumped at him, only to pass through his ghostly form. Rhys trembled in fear of the rats as they circled him and his sack of ash.

As Rhys tried to keep an eye on them, he noticed a tearing sound and turned to look back at the rag. The rats were ripping a hole in it! Rhys let out a panicked screech as he began whipping the rat with his tail, to no effect as the rat kept going. Ash started to spill out of the rag as Rhys panickedly trying to plug the hole only the find two more rats ripping holes in the sack, the original one backing off after finding it wasn't food. Rhys couldn't do anything as the rats descending on him and the makeshift bag of ash. Why wouldn't they just stop!

Just like with the fire, the rats seemed to immediately stop and turned to stare at Rhys with a strange glow, not unlike that of embers in their eyes. Rhys looked at the rats as they stared back. Rhys asked them to back away from the sack, they did so instantaneously. Rhys narrowed his eyes, once again processing the strange occurrence. Rhys then requested the rats to carry the bag of ash outside.

Three of the rats scuttled over to the sack and began to drag the leaking sack of ash out of the kitchen. Rhys thought about this for a minute before asking the remaining rats to set out rags on the floor before zipping out the kitchen and to a window.

There in a nearby tree were a group of birds, Rhys concentrated with all of his might and called out to the birds. The birds immediately turned their heads staring at Rhys, the same ember-like glow in their eyes. Rhys requested they come into the house to help clean the kitchen and the group of eight birds flew from their branches and into the house.

Rhys spent the rest of the day burning away mold and working with the birds and rats to pick away the ash and dust from the kitchen, as well as clean the windows. His friend was going to be so happy when he woke up!

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this week's chapter make sure to leave a comment, I reply to every one.
> 
> Also if you like this AU make sure to check out http://shadowfear-art.tumblr.com/ as this AU was made by them!


	4. Surprise Sass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack finally awakens from his slumber to find a shit ton of birds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for having this chapter late, I'm still kinda getting used to having a writing schedule!

The sun finally set, and with it, Jack emerged from the shadows of his room. Jack eyed his bedroom, it was still there, which was as a good sign. Jack cautiously left the bedroom and looked around the hallway. Everything was still in its place. Jack let out a sigh of relief. Jack, more confidently, made his way down the hall to the main foyer. He was thanking whatever god still smiled upon him that the little idiot didn't destroy the mansion in any meaningful way while he was resting. That tiny thing, while not powerful, had the intelligence of a small animal, and Jack had known dumber humans when he was alive that seemed to be able to fuck up everything they touched back when he ran his company. But it seems it all turned out ok he thought as he entered the foyer, the ceiling was intact, the statues were still in one piece, there were birds and rats everywhere, Rhys' body was still on the sta- wait what about birds and rats?

They were everywhere. The entire foyer was filled with the fluttering of crows and the skittering sounds of tiny rat claws running all around his beautiful main hall. Jack hovered in the entrance to the east wing, staring at all of the animals making a mess of his house. How did they even get in? Jack couldn't open the doors, and he was confident they were all closed, they shouldn't have been able to get into his house! Unless...

"RHYS! GET OVER HERE RIGHT THE HELL NOW YOU LITTLE OVERRATED CANDLE" Jack bellowed at the top of his non-existent lungs, the animals completely ignored him, however. It only took a few moments before the annoying little ray of sunshine zipped up the stairs and came to a stop in front of Jack, seemingly very pleased with itself.  
"Oooouuooouu!" Rhys smiled,  
"Don't you 'Good evening' me! WHY ARE THERE VERMIN EVERYWHERE!?!?!" Jack screamed at Rhys in anger. Rhys seemed slightly upset by his obviously unpleased reaction but replied all the same,  
"Outdoor Ououuuu OOOuuuoO!"  
"They helped you clean the kitchen and now the dining room?!? How the hell did they do that?? They're just fucking animals??" Jack's anger was beginning to die down as confusion began to rise. He started to take a closer look at what the animals were doing, and sure enough, he saw crows carrying bags of ash and dust and the rats were making piles of trash and picking away at wax that had accumulated on the floors and walls from Jack's murders.

"Ooouuuu Ooooouu" Rhys replied, starting to grin again now that his new friend wasn't so outright hostile toward his new animal buddies.  
"You just asked?" Jack looked at him in confusion, and Rhys nodded.

Jack stood there in wonder at the small ghostlet, and a strange feeling of doubt began to form. Maybe he was wrong about his previous assumption, maybe Rhys was a bit more powerful than he gave him credit for. Now that Jack was paying attention to Rhys, he could sense that Rhys' power had grown, and he was starting to get the sense that his abilities were going to keep growing over time. This is not good. This was not good at all. Jack needed to figure out how to get rid of him, and fast before he got too strong and became the primary haunt of the house.

However there was still one glaring issue with his plan, he had no idea what kind of ghost Rhys was. He didn't even know there were different kinds, but apparently, there were, cause he and Rhys were nothing alike. Speaking of the little pest, apparently, he wanted something because he kept tugging at Jack's hand.

"What do you want Rhys?" Jack asked, rather unamused by the little ghostlet as he quickly tugged his hand free.  
"Ouuuooo!" Rhys floated up and down excitedly,  
"Right you mentioned cleaning the kitchen before, what the hell did you do..." Jack narrowed his eyeholes suspiciously as he followed the excited ghostlet down the kitchens.

On the way, Rhys posed a question to Jack,  
"Ouuuooo?"  
"My name? Right, I haven't told you that have I? It's Jack, But you will call me Handsome Jack, the Master of the house on Helios Hill," Handsome Jack, the Master of the house on Helios Hill replied self-assured,  
"Ouuuo"  
"Yes it is long, and you will address me by my full title every time!" Handsome Jack, the Master of the house on Helios Hill replied  
"U" Rhys argued  
"Yes!" Handsome Jack, the Master of the house on Helios Hill argued back  
"U" Rhys stuck to his guns  
"Yes, you will!" Handsome Jack, the Master of the house demanded  
"U, Ouuu" Rhys stated  
"No, you will not just call me Jack! call me by Handsome Jack at least!" Handsome Jack yelled at the ghostlet, but the ghostlet refused to give in.  
"U"  
"Arrrgh!" Jack pinched the part of his face where his nose should be and shook his head.  
"You are a troublesome little twerp, and I cannot wait until I get rid of you,"  
"Ooouuuuu!"  
"I am serious about getting rid of you! it is not a joke!"  
"Oooo" Rhys replied with as much of a shit eating grin as the tiny cinnamon ball of wax could manage  
"NO, I DO NOT LOVE YOU TOO MUCH! I DON'T EVEN LIKE YOU!" Jack screamed back at the ghostlet, when had this thing gotten so damn sassy? He was not at all like this last night, was this power increase effective his intelligence and personality too? More reason to get rid of him quickly.

Jack was still contemplating how to get rid of him when they finally arrived at the kitchen. Jack braced himself as Rhys opened the door to the kitchen to reveal...

The place was scorched to hell but besides that spotless.  
"Why are their scorch marks?" Jack gave a confused look to the ghostlet. Rhys just stared at him before cocking his head to the side and replied  
"Ooouu"  
"How does 'I was cleaning' have to do with scorch marks?" Jack furrowed what remained of his brow.  
"Ooouu ouuuo."  
"You were cleaning with fire." Jack repeated, Rhys nodded, "Why and how."

Rhys excitedly floated over to the closet stove, and Jack slowly followed after him. Rhys remained stationary in front of the stove looking between Jack and the stove. Jack floated utterly still, an unamused expression painted on his non-existent face. Rhys then focused his attention on the stove, and it burst into flames.

Jack immediately jumped backward at the sight of fire, it giving him horrible flashbacks of...  
"TURN IT OFF! TURN IT OFF RIGHT NOW!!!" roared in anger at the ghostlet. Rhys immediately extinguished the flames, looking like a kicked puppy. Jack turned away from the stove and fixed his gaze upon the opposite wall, seeming to shake violently. Rhys and Jack simply floated there for a few minutes as Jack recomposed himself.

After Rhys thought enough time had passed he cautiously floated over to his housemate,  
"Oooouu?"  
"I'm fine!" Jack snapped at Rhys and Rhys immediately backed off. Jack once again fixed his gaze on the opposite wall. He could control animals, he could light and extinguish fires, and he was getting smarter and stronger. What the hell was this little freak?

Jack turned on Rhys,  
"What are you?"  
"Uoo?"  
"I mean what kind of ghost you are? I can't do what you can do, I can't interact with the physical world except when I'm killing people, but you! You can interact with it not just whenever you want to, but as much as you want to, so I ask you again, what are you?  
"Ou oouuUUo."  
"I DON'T CARE IF THAT EXPLAINS WHY THE KITCHEN WAS A MESS! ANSWER MY QUESTION!" Jack yelled,  
"OOUU"  
"I DON'T ACCEPT THAT YOU DON'T KNOW, TELL ME!" Jack began to advance on Rhys  
"OOUU" Rhys backed away from the advancing larger ghost.  
"TELL ME!" Jack backed him into a corner  
"OOUU" Rhys looked to be on the brink of tears.

Jack sighed as he looked at the shaking ghostlet, waxy tears threatening to overflow from Rhys' eye holes. Jack slowly reached out to the ghostlet and guided it to his chest and just held it there as it shook and sobbed.  
"You really don't know do you?"  
"U," Jack let out another sigh at the confirmation that Rhys knew nothing of what he was,  
"Look, it seems like we might have gotten off on the wrong foot. Am I sorry for yelling ok? I've never seen anything like you before, and the abilities you possess are rather frightening, but that's no excuse to shout." Jack apologized to the smaller spirit.

He didn't know why he was apologizing. He was just going to get rid of the thing anyway, why was he apologizing? Still, it seemed like the right thing to do after scarring the tiny thing out of its skin. And as much as he didn't want to admit it, Rhys was, in fact, starting to grow on him. Not that that was going to stop him from exorcising him the second he got the chance, but he might as well not make his afterlife hell for the duration of his, hopefully, the short stay in the house on Helios Hill.

Besides, it might be fun having a roommate, if only for a short time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you liked this chapter please be sure to write and comment, I reply to each one!


	5. In which Jack has another of many Rhys fueled headaches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few steps forward and a few steps back for Jack, and while Jack has another migraine Rhys is... Rhys.

Rhys, to his credit, was very helpful if not all that bright. Jack was comfortably situated levitating atop his armchair, which was plump and padded once upon a time ago. However, he couldn't feel the lumps that came with its age, he couldn't feel much of anything anymore, he could, however, read. Which is what he happened to be doing right then.  
  
After the incident in the kitchen, Jack had decided to ‘make it up’ to the little guy and offered to let him explore his expansive library. Luckily the library had been in the west wing and subsequently saved from the fiery inferno. Well, he says luckily, in reality, Jack would much rather have had the fire in the west wing because then he would be, well, alive. Not that it mattered now, as much as Jack wanted to turn back the hands of time it was a futile effort that never amounted to anything. If he could there would be a lot of things he would want to change besides just dying; he wasn't exactly a popular man in his life, alienated everyone, his family, hif friends, a wife, a daughter, a brother.

While he would like to paint himself as a big damn hero that could do no wrong, dying gives a lot of time for self-reflection, and a lot of time to realize exactly how much of a massive douche you actually were. Not that he’ll ever admit this. Sharks in the water an all. Well if we’re being entirely honest there aren't actually any sharks in these particular waters. Just that one little cinnamon bun that Jack assumes was a great goddamn person in his life and is happy in death cause he has no regrets. Luckily bastard. Speaking of which, Jack lost his point almost as much as he lost his life. What was he thinking again? Right! The Library and the little house guest.

Rhys was happily exploring around the library and would occasionally turn the page of the book Jack was reading. The book Jack was reading was his actual point in being here. He had searched the entire library in a desperate attempt to see if he maybe had just one book on ghosts. He did, but just some old relic with most of the pages worn away. All Jack could pray was that the information he needed didn't conveniently get ripped out of the book or faded away to illegible letters. Let’s see here;

_“An Interactive Personality is the most common of ghosts. These ghosts have the personality and memories…”_

Not that one Rhys has lost all his memories. Jack has Rhys turn the page.

_“The Ectoplasm or Ecto-Mist are visible to the living as shrouding forms of mist…”_

Not that one Rhys looks norm- Wait, that said to the living right? What if he actually does look like a weird mist orb to living people? Jack narrows his eyes, thinking on this for a second, finally deciding to read a bit more as he doesn't exactly have anything else to do.

_“ ...forms of mist and appear several feet off of the ground. These strange occurrences can remain either stationary, move slowly, or move at a rapid pace in a strange elliptical pattern, almost as if orbiting something.”_

No this is definitely just some kind of supernatural phenomena and not an actual ghost. Jack has Rhys turn the page again.

_“Orbs are the most common phenom-”_

Jack has Rhys turn the page.

_“Funnel ghosts are more commonly known as cold-spots-”_

This is just more phenomena! Jack calls Rhys to turn the page again, who wound up not even bothering to leave due to the frequency of these requests. The next page was mostly worn away, as the book began to near the section that had been heavily water damaged.

_“... can possess small creatures, animals, and start small fires at the beginning of their haunt.”_

Finally something Jack can work with, while most of the information has been washed away, anything at this point is a welcome change to the nothingness before. Jack studies the paper intensely, not noticing Rhys turn around and wander out of the library.

_“These haunts will usually only last up to four days, however, if they last longer, seek an exorcist immediately.”_

Jack didn't like where this was going.

_“These haunts will only grow stronger as time goes on, small fires will turn to large fires, and small creatures will turn to large animals, and large animals will turn to people. These haunts are by far the rarest and most dangerous. However, if you are able to exorcise the spirit and lay it to rest with whatever unfinished business the haunt may have in a timely fashion everything should work itself out quickly and without any cause for alarm.”_

Well, that's not going to happen.

_“However when dealing with these haunts there are a few things that are huge no-nos: Do not ask the spirit how they died...”_

Well too late for that, Jack literally murdered the kid in cold blood or more cold wax.

_“... do not try to provoke or angry the haunt…”_

Jack put a check down in that box as well since he just got done yelling at the little idiot.

_“...and finally do not ---”_

Jack wasn't sure what the rest of the page said, but he decided to check that one off the list as well because he probably did that too. So perfect, he's got a tiny little ghoslet primed and ready to cause mass destruction if he doesn't exorcise it, he's already done the three things your not supposed to do, and he still has no idea how to exorcise the little bugger. The only thing he could do was keep a close eye on him from now on.

“Rhys! Get over here!” Jack called out into the library, but Rhys did not answer his call. Instead, the only response he got was the could of his front door, closing. Jack whipped around before immediately going into ‘Oh Shit’ mode and dashing as fast as he could levitate out of the library, down the hall, and to the foyer.

As he looked down the stairs he could see two teenage boys pointing their flashlights at a rather conspicuous Rhys just floating in the center of the foyer.  
“Holy shit dude if that an actual ghost?” The first one breathed,  
“No way dude, look at that thing its obviously a puppet or something, ghosts are all like this” The second teenager spread his arms out and moved on and off his tip toes while making “ooooOOOOoooo” sound.  
“Ouuuooo!” Rhys happily replied to the teenager's apparent conversation? Honestly, Jack could tell what was going on at this point because he was too busy facepalming. He felt kind of dumb being at all concerned that Rhys was going to hurt someone or him, the kid was an idiot.  
“The puppet just talked dude!” the first one pointed at Rhys.  
“Well obviously, it's an animatronic puppet probably has a voice box or something,” the second one huffed as he strode over to Rhys, pointing the flashlight directly in the ghostlet's face, who just happily smiled back.  
“Ouuuooo!” Rhys once again tried welcoming them.  
“Wonder where the string is.” the second moved his hand out to turn Rhys around to look for an invisible string, only to find his hand passed directly through Rhys. The teenager calmly retracted his hand, looked at it, then moved his hand through Rhys repeatedly before finally freaking out.  
“HOLY SHIT DUDE IT’S AN ACTUAL GHOST!”  
“HOLY SHIT DUDE WHAT THE FUCK” The other teenager equally freaked out, pulling out his phone.

Jack finally decided he had enough of this shit and descended unto the teenagers. The teenagers, to their credit, we’re very bright, if not all that helpful. So when they saw a much larger, much angrier looking ghost descend from the top of the stairs directly to them, they decided to cut their losses and burst through the front door.

Jack sighed and shook his head at the fading screams of the terrified youth, he had hoped he would be able to kill them to stop them from spreading the word about his home, but… Jack turned to Rhys  
“Why were you trying to welcome them in?”  
“Ouuo OoooO” Rhys replied as if the answer were obvious.  
“No, they were trespassers! That’s like… the opposite of a guest!” Jack snapped back indignantly, Rhys just Shrug and happily trilled back to the library. Jack let out a long sigh, Rhys was a lot of trouble, and if that book was correct, he was just going to wind up being a lot more trouble. And yet, Jack actually felt kinda happy for once in a long time. Those teenagers screaming in terror as they ran from his house was… actually kinda funny. The inevitable internet posts bringing trouble and visitors to his mansion we're going to be less funny, but still, he can deal with that later. Jack let a smile creep onto his lips as he began his journey back to the library.

A week later a man sits at the breakfast table sipping some coffee and eating some eggs when he sees an internet post about a place he used to know a long time ago. Apparently, two teenagers wandered into the old house of Helios hill and saw not one, but two ghosts. The man choked on his coffee as his chest tightened, could it be? He quickly ate the rest of his meal and rushed out the door to work, searching up any local mediums or exorcists, even if it wasn't… He had to know for sure.


	6. Nisha Kadame, Ghost Hunter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our mysterious fellow enlists the help of a local ghost hunter to investigate a certain mansion...

The man looked up at the strange sign in front of the shop. He had been searching for a medium or an exorcist all day during his work breaks, and this one seemed to be the best in the area, or at least the one with the best reviews on Yelp. He was so sure of himself when he drove over after work but now looking at the dingy little place and the sign that read “Nisha, Ghost Hunter” doubt was beginning to creep in.

He didn't have long to fret about this however as the door suddenly burst open. The man yelped and jumped back in surprise as a rather beautiful looking woman with a scowl on her face leaned against the doorway staring at him.  
“Well gee I know I’m gorgeous, but are you just gonna sit out here all day or are you gonna grow some balls and get inside my shop?” the woman stated bluntly as she stared at him. The man froze as they stared at each other, before eventually shuffling past who he assumed was Nisha and into the shop.  
  
“There we go, also close your mouth you’ll catch flies or some shit…” Nisha sighed as she closed the door to her shop. Now that he was inside the shop he was able to get a good look at all of the merchandise inside. Besides consultations, she also seemed to sell a number of charms, information books, and even a few children's toys. He frowned however as his eyes fell on an entire row of different salts and iron spokes, circlets, other iron products. He pointed at all the salts and iron things.

“What are these for? I understand the charms and booklets, I can even get behind the toys I guess, but why so much salt and iron?” he questioned, turning back to Nisha who was now heading back behind the counter.

“Those things are for actually helping with ghosts, you can keep ghosts away with circles of salt and lines of slat on doorways and on window sills. Also if a ghost is attacking you can find them off with things made of pure iron.” Nisha explained as she slipped onto a chair behind her counter and propped her feet on the counter. “I get some amateur ghost hunters coming in to buy my stuff sometimes, helps with business” Nisha shrugged “also go them on a bulk deal and sell em for five times the price” she mumbled before raising her voice again, regarding the man with a critical eye. “Although if you're asking about this stuff…” she swung her feet down and leaned across the desk so she was only a few inches away from his face. The man leaned back from her intense stare.

“Your not a ghost hunter, but maybe a ghost hunting? Come! Spill your heart out to me cute stranger.” Nisha smiled at him. He swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to suppress the blush that had snuck onto his cheeks from her calling him cute and began.  
“Well I haven't met the ghost personally, I’ve never even been to the place since…” he trailed off the memories of the blaze coming back to him.

“Were you there when our ghost died?” Nisha asked softly, he just now noticed she had moved back, he nodded.  
“I saw the house burning in the distance and ran as fast as I could but… I was too late, he part of the house he was in had already collapsed in the inferno by the time I made it there.” he breathed quietly.  
“Now I’m going to assume you heard somehow, maybe a friend, or a new resident, or some other way that they think the house is haunted, and you want to go over there and put him to rest?” He nodded, “Well!” Nisha clapped her hands together, startling the man out of his haze,

“I’ll take the case! It's a 250 upfront and 300 after we appease the spirit! Sound good?”  
“Yeah, I have the money here”  
“Really? Most people try to barter me down…”  
“No it's fine, my brother left me a sizeable piece of his will when he died, in all honesty, I have enough money to buy a mansion and then never work a day again in my life, so if $550 is your fee…” He handed over two 100 dollar bills and a 50. Nisha immediately began smirking widely,  
“Well, I suppose its time to properly introduce myself, the names Nisha Kadam, and you?”  
“Oh! Yeah sorry, my name is Timothy Lawerence, although most people just call me Tim.” Tim replied as he put his wallet away.

“Alright let me just get some supplies and we’ll head over!” Nisha announced as she walked into a back room.  
“Wait right now? Arent we like supposed to schedule a time? And where we’re gonna meet? Arent, you going to ask more questions? And get someone to look over your shop? The mansion is like an eight-hour drive away!” Tim shouted after her, confused and alarmed, he couldn't just take a road trip right now! He had work tomorrow!  
“Aint no time like the present! And I’ll just close it down for a few days it's fine!” Nisha called back as the sounds of things being unceremoniously dumped into a bag clanged from the back room.  
“I have work tomorrow! And I haven't packed any overnight bags!” Tim once again protested but was only met by a stone wall answer of  
“You’re loaded, right? Just take the day off! And you can buy new clothes along the way!” Nisha finally burst from the back room, a duffle bag slung over her shoulder. “Now let's go appease a spirit!” she pushed past him, grabbing his arm and dragging him with her and out the door as she flicked off her lights and locked up the shop. Nisha smirked, this was gonna be fun.


	7. Calm before the storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The pieces are set into place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND ON TIME UPDATE? WHAT IS THE THE TWILIGHT ZONE?

Nisha was leaning back in the passenger's seat blaring “The Clash” as she sang loudly along with the lyrics. Tim had protested to the music at first but eventually just tried to focus on driving when Nisha gave no inclination of turning it off. They had been driving for around three hours and Tim was beginning to get tired, his eyes straining to see the road in the harsh contrast of inky blackness and bright headlights.  
  
“I think we should pull over at the next hotel,” Tim yelled over the music to Nisha,  
“Whatever you say, boss your paying for it!” Nisha just laughed during a refrain. Tim was beginning to suspect that Nisha might just be a con artist looking for a weekend bender on someone else’s tab, but he had already gone so far, and the Yelp reviews did warn of her eccentric personality. Tim just sighed, shaking his head of doubt and of sleep, he wouldn't know for sure until tomorrow.

Tim felt a sinking feeling in his gut as it finally sunk in that he was returning to his twin’s burnt down estate the next day. Would his ghost even be there? What would he say even if it was? Was he doing ok in the mansion? Was he still himself or had his mental state deteriorated after death? Tim had so many, he glanced at Nisha, who was headbanging in the seat next to him, and decided he’d question her once they got to the hotel. For now, however, he just focused on the road, silently wondering about his dead brother’s fate.

_____________________

“Rhys nO!” Jack yelled as Rhys knocked another one of his few remaining valuable possessions off of its safe perch on a table, like a stupider version of a cat. The book Jack had read had said Rhys would get stronger as time went on, but all that’s happened so far is he’s been able to affect the world around him easier, sometimes even on accident. Yeah right, not on purpose my ass, who the fuck just launches sever EXPENSIVE AND VERY NICE china dinner plates against the opposite wall on accident.

Besides that Rhys has also mastered the skill of making strange knocking sounds on the walls to get Jack’s attention easier, and one time accidentally made a window explode into shards. It was all very strange and Jack was kinda concerned, but at this point, he’d gotten used to it. Several cats wandering around in a disturbing oriented fashion? Rhys is playing with strays again. Did a a book just launch itself against a wall? Rhys is just playing around. Is the fireplace inexplicably lit? Rhys likes the pretty colors. The abnormal had quickly become routine, and Jack had all but given up on trying to exorcise Rhys and decided to just learn to live with his strange little friend.

Rhys made another happy trilling sound as he knocked over another fire damaged vase. Jack cringed as he heard the shattering noise, but just let out a long sigh of his non-existent lungs. Is this what it was like having a cat?

_____________________

Nisha had ordered the best conjoining rooms in the hotel and then almost a hundred dollars in room service. Tim supposed he should be a bit more irritated by her spending, but in reality, none of this even came close to putting even a scratch on his bank account. Now Nisha sat in a plush white bathrobe stuffing her face with various expensive foods, he was pretty sure she just picked the most expensive stuff on the menu, while Tim began asking her questions.

“Is Jack even going to remember me if he is there?” Tim asked, fearing the answer to his inquiry. Nisha swallowed a mouthful of food before shrugging,  
“Maybe. Maybe not. Depends on a lot of things really.” Nisha looked back at him before gulping down a glass of champagne.  
“But you will be able to appease him right?” Tim urged, shifting forward in his chair. Nisha immediately began nodding her head as she swallowed another mouthful of food,  
“Oh yeah, from what I’ve been reading about this blog post, from what the kids mention it sounds like a run of the mill wraith. Two of them that is.” Nisha takes a slip before swinging her chair around to fully face Tim,

“That basically means it's like a ghostly consciousness floating about, some of them are more aware of their past lives than others, but they're all basically the same. We’ll see a ghostly apparition, then all we gotta do is talk to him, work out his unfinished business and there we go! All done, simple as simplicity itself. Although there is a small wrench in the plan, that second wraith. From the description, it's smaller and generally a lot weaker than your brother, so that shouldn't be an issue,” Nisha leaned back in her chair and let out a large yawn, “Baring any strangeness we should be in an out tomorrow night!” Nisha gave him her winning smile.

_____________________

  
Jack called out to his feline friend a few times before groaning realizing what he was probably doing. Jack floated his way over to the foyer and, yep, there the little stinker was, staring at his wax statue. Jack had noted over the course of the week Rhys had slowly become more and more interested in staring at his dead body. Jack didn't know whether to be happy he was finally taking an interest in who he used to be, or concerned because he was staring at his own corpse for several hours a day. Jack decided to go for the safest option and just not give a shit. This approach usually didn't work out. Jack didn't give a shit. Problem solved.

“Alright come on! The sun is rising soon,” Jack called to the little guy who immediately perked up and trilled happily and floated in circles around his head as Jack wandered over to his room and settled into it’s darkest corner, Rhys settling into his side.

Jack found spending the day allowing the little thing to cuddle into him was the easiest way to keep him out of trouble. Rhys looked up at Jack with his beady little eyes and smiled brightly at him. Jack damned the fact that his small form made him objectively adorable as he felt a genuine smile creep onto his wax face. The two settled just as the sun peaked over the horizon, none of the four the wiser as to the destruction to come in just eight-teen hours.


	8. 18 hours and counting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nisha and Tim arrive in town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow this chapter turned out like twice as long as normal

**\-- 2:34 pm, 3 hours and 56 minutes remaining --**

Tim lowered the volume on the rock music blaring inside the car as he pulled into his hometown, not wanting to disturb any pedestrians. Nisha finally kicked her feet down from the dashboard as they entered the town, now staring intently at the window, trying to get a feel for the place.

The place was very… well, it's about what you would expect when someone said they came from a “hometown.” The location was old but not old enough to be considered out of date or obsolete, it just felt... comfortable. The houses were looked well maintained, even with the bricks of the main stores and buildings chipping away at the sides giving away their age. Most people were out walking about instead of in cars, and from the casual chatting Nisha saw while Tim passed, they all seemed to know each other as well. The well maintained old houses, general cheerfulness, and small piles of snow still melting from the heavy snowfall a week ago made the place seem like a Christmas movie waiting to happen. Nisha narrowed her eyes.

This place seemed very nice, a bit too nice… Something was probably up with this town, there always was. Nothing was ever just bland, there was always something else at play. Well, whatever it was Nisha couldn't even hope a guess since she just arrived, however…

“So whats the catch?” Nisha said idly, still watching everyone intently, and catching quite a few confused stares.  
“Catch?” Tim furrowed his brow in confusion, he had absolutely no idea what the woman in his car was getting at.  
“Yeah… This place is just, like, super nice. Pretty bland if I'm honest. So there has to be some sort of catch, what is it? Corrupt cops? Illegal drug dealing? A cult or some shit?” Nisha turned fully to Tim, studying his face, finding only rampant confusion.

“Um… No?” Tim glanced at Nisha’s face, and seeing that she obviously didn't believe him, he let out a long sigh, “This place is just bland, nothing super exciting ever happens. The first time anything really major happened in as long as I can remember was… well, you get it. The point is-” Tim turned to face her completely stopping at a stop light, “This place is just boring, there's no underlying thing, I don't know why you think there would be.” Tim shook his head, pressing back down on the gas as the light turned green.

“There’s always something” Nisha mumbled, this proved nothing, only that Tim wasn't involved. Nisha was curious to figure out what was happening here, but supposed in the end it really didn't matter, she’d be out of her by tomorrow at the latest. Nisha stretched herself over the chair and bent it back as far as it could go, practically laying down. Tim furrowed his brow  
“That’s not safe…”  
“Like you said, nothing ever happens around here, so I’m perfectly safe!” Nisha yawned fitting her arms behind her head and relaxing. Tim shook his head but kept driving.

It was another five minutes before they finally reached the police station.  
“Ok, we’re here, grab your stuff, we’re gonna have to walk from here,” Tim stated as he parked and turned off the car. Nisha peaked an eye open before sitting up to take in their surroundings,

“The police station?” Nisha questioned as she saw the building, it was pretty small, so Nisha narrowed her eyes at the strangely large parking lot, complete with an unusually large amount of cars. Exactly how much crime did this do nothing town have?

“Yup,” Tim said, popping the ‘p’ and opening the car door “There are a lot of places here that have trails too small to drive a car, so people park their cars here because its safest.” Tim stepped out of the car and swung the door closed, Nisha following soon after.  
“Safest? Are there lots of carjackings or something?” Nisha narrowed her eyes as Tim shook his head.  
“No, its just folks think of the police in smaller towns differently than cities. The police here aren't just a bunch of strangers with badges, they’re friends and family members. This leads to a more…” Tim waved his arms around as he waited for Nisha to grab her bag from his trunk, looking for a word “Personal!” Tim snapped his fingers “relationship, so people just feel comfortable leaving their cars here.” Tim ended with a shrug.

“Tim? Is that you?” asked a woman. Both Tim and Nisha turned around to greet the new guest as Nisha closed the trunk door. The woman who stood in front of them had short, fiery red hair. She was wearing a dark brown police uniform and a large badge on her breast above her heart. Peaking out from her uniform, Nisha could spot what looked to be strange blue tribal tattoos all along her left side.  
“Ah! Sheriff Lilith, it’s nice to see you again!” Tim smiled widely at the new arrival, all Nisha could do was raise an eyebrow.  
“It’s great to see you too Tim,” Lilith gave him a warm smile, and the two joined for a short embrace before separating, “Everyone’s missed you since you left, I hope life has been treating you well.”  
“Oh yeah! Everything has been going great, I’ve got a nice job and a nice apartment in the city about four hours away and… yeah, things have just been going really well.” Tim smiled, happy to see the sheriff again, “How’s everything been going over here?”

“Oh, yeah everything has been going totally fine over here, nothing much happens, so the boys are getting pretty restless, but I guess boredom is better than excitement in our line of work” Lilith let out a laugh. However, before she was able to continue with whatever she was going to say, she was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat very loudly. Both Tim and Lilith turned to look at Nisha who was starting to get a bit annoyed at the both ignoring her.  
“Hi,” Nisha plastered on a fake smile, “Name’s Nisha.”  
“Ah, sorry about that Nisha, I’m Sheriff Lilith, and you’re Tim’s girlfriend?” Lilith guessed looking between the two. Tim immediately turned bright red as Nisha let out a little too hard laugh,  
“No no, we are NOT in a relationship, I’m a private investigator. I’m here on a job for Tim.” She explained pointing at the tomato.  
“A private investigator? What? What exactly are you investigating?” Lilith narrowed her eyes, suspicion clearly evident as she glanced at Tim, who was still recovering from the girlfriend comment.  
“Oh, you know… Things…” Nisha replied, trying to keep it vague.  
“Things…” Lilith’s expression switched from suspicion to confusion.  
“About the mansion on the hill…” Nisha began to slyly smirk, but it faltered for a moment when she thought she saw something in Liliths eyes for just a moment. However, her investigation into the sheriff was cut off by Tim opening his big, fat, stupid mouth.  
“She’s a paranormal investigator, I hired her to check out my brother’s burned down mansion to see if his spirit still remains. Lilith’s expression turned to that of pity,  
“Tim… I know his death was really hard on you… but you’ve gotta let go.” Tim just turned away, and Nisha interjected,  
“He already paid soooo….” Nisha began to try to subtly urge Tim to move the fuck on as Lilith planted a disapproving stare on her. Tim sighed, taking the hint.  
“Just think of it as closure Lilith, anyway, have a nice day, it was really nice seeing you again.” Tim turned and began heading toward the sidewalk, sighing in relief as she started walking after him before someone caught her arm.

Lilith stared Nisha directly in the eyes,  
“Tim is a nice guy, you better not take advantage of him, or there is going to be hell to pay.” Nisha and the Sheriff seemed to have a stare down before Nisha roughly broke Lilith’s grip with a swift yank of her arm.  
“I’m good at what I do, sheriff, if there are any ghosts there, I’ll know” Nisha continued the stare down for a moment longer before adjusting her bag and jogging to catch up with Tim.

“Where to now boss?”

**\-- 4:45 pm, 1 hour and 45 minutes remaining --**

“Oh my god, I thought you knew where we’re going!” Nisha exclaimed in frustration as she swatted yet another bug from her arm. Tim just let out a long sigh.  
“I haven't been here in years, and trecking through the forest isn't exactly easy,” he muttered to himself as he checked his map.

“It’s not too much further, maybe another half an hour.” Tim turns to Nisha who… is not there, where the fuck did she go? Tim looks around from her before finally spotting her sitting in a small field, sprawled out in the snow. Tim made his way over to the woman, staring down at her.

“UGH! If I had known there was going to be so much hiking, I would have actually packed!” Nisha groaned in complaint, refusing to get up from the ground. Tim just let out a sigh before sitting next to her and offering her a lunch box. Nisha raised an eyebrow as she opened it, finding a bottle of water and what looked to be a fancy room service sandwich inside. Nisha immediately began chowing down on the food as Tim ate his own. Inbetween bites Nisha questioned  
“When did you get these?”  
“Last night, I had the idea to pack some food for when we come out here since its so far away from town, so I went out, bought some lunch boxes, and ordered some room service,” Tim shrugged taking a bite from his sandwich, “I didn't know what you liked, but you seemed to be scarfing down everything you could get your hands on, so I figured it, didn't matter,. Nisha’s eye twitched.  
“Are you calling me a fatty?” Nisha growled  
“No! I was just saying you didn't seem picky with what you ate! You’re beautiful!” Tim began rambling, and Nisha let out a sigh, shaking her head.

**\-- 5:23 pm, 1 hour and 7 minutes remaining --**

They finally made it to the house, and just in time too. The wind was beginning to pick up, and snow was starting to fall, it was starting to look like they were going to have to spend the night, lest they get stuck in the winter storm that was surely coming.

Tim hesitated once he got to the mansion, the memories of the fire drug up anew as he started at the dilapidated mansion. Nisha however, had no such worries and quickly kicked the door open.  
“HELLO!” Nisha screamed into the darkness of the mansion, clicking on her flashlight. The first thing that caught her eyes was the wax sculptures. There were quite a few of them, one was in the corner of the room another was against a burnt door another sitting on the staircase in a corner. It was all quite disturbing. What was more disturbing was the looks of fear and agony locked onto the faces of the sculptures. Nisha narrowed her eyes as she walked over to examine the one in the corner closer. Tim followed her into the mansion, shutting the door behind him to keep out the chilling air, and flicked on his flashlight as well.

“Any chance your brother was some sort of weird statue collector?” Nisha called over to Tim, still staring intently at the statue.  
“No… No, I’m sure these weren't here before…” Tim nearly whispered as he examined the figure on the staircase. “They look kinda at peace don't you think?” Tim called over, Nisha immediately turned and looked at Tim like he was insane. It took her a second to realize that the figure on the staircase actually did look at peace compared to the others, he was smiling softly, his hands outstretched as if he were holding something right as he died. Both of them stopped to examine the statue, unaware as another presence decided from the ceiling slowly.

Jack was pissed, who the fuck are these people and why were they in his god damn house. They nearly woke Rhys up too! And he was all cute sleeping curled up to Jack, not that he was watching, Jack just assumed he would be. Jack let out a low quite growl as he began to form his ball of wax ready to drop it directly onto the two idiots faces when the man opened his mouth.

“I wonder what he was looking at, must have been nice.”

Jack froze in place. That. That couldn't be who he thought it was. He slipped down the wall, slinking in the shadows desperate to get a better look at the man. The man turned around, guiding his flashlight around the room as he searched for… something. Jack let out a small gasp. It was him, it was his twin brother…

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING HERE!” Jack screamed at the top of his nonexistence lungs as he emerged from the shadows a few feet from Tim’s face.

Tim shrieked at the top of his lungs in panic and surprise as a specter of waxy death screamed in his face. Nisha whipped around in panic just soon enough to see Tim take a nose dive directly into the carpet and slide down the staircase, he was out cold. Nisha looked down at Tim and then up at the wax form of Jack?

“Are you Jack Lawerence?” Nisha questioned cautiously, slowly reaching into the bag for an iron rod.  
“Yes, now what the hell are you two doing here?” Jack said, this time at a reasonable level.  
“We’re here to put you to rest so you can move on- Why the fuck did you yell in his face?” Nisha was just extremely confused at this entire thing. This was the strangest exorcism she’s ever been involved in. Usually, ghosts stray away from visitors, but this guy seemed to not give a single fuck.  
“Oh, yeah… well, Tim was always super easy to spook so I thought I’d give him a scare,” Jack looked down at his twin’s unconscious body, “Maybe it was a bad idea… Whatever, it’s his own damn fault, he should have visited me sooner, I’ve been here alone for so long.” Jack let out a huff.

Nisha sighed and shook her head before lifting Tim’s unconscious body,  
“Anywhere we can talk besides this dark-ass entry-hall?” Nisha gritted her teether, damn this guy was heavy.  
“Yeah, sure, I’ll show you to the library.”

**\-- 6:03 pm, 27 minutes remaining--**

It took Tim a good half hour before he finally woke up, he ached a bit, and his head hurt, probably from hitting the ground. Tim immediately remembered what had happened and sat up from his awkward slouched position in an armchair that was perhaps comfortable once upon a time ago.

“Jack?” Tim questioned as he saw Nisha and a strange wax figure talking next to a dead fireplace. They both turned to him as he finally stirred.

“Hey, kiddo, nice to see you again.” The wax figure, Jack spoke up. Tim couldn't stop the tears from coming to his eyes as he was once again talking to his brother. The man he thought he lost to the fire forever.

“Y-You’re…” Tim sputtered, and for once, Nisha was content to sit on the sidelines of a conversation.  
“Hey, don’t cry like that…” Jack frowned floating over to his weeping brother. Jack was never good with crying people, he wasn't in life, and nothing changed after death, so he tried his best to reassure Tim.  
“I’m just so happy to see you again.” Tim managed to get out between sobs,  
“Yeah well if you came sooner you would have seen me sooner…” Jack mumbled, he knew he was being irrational and unfair in his bitterness. He knew why Tim hadn't come sooner, it was probably painful for him to come here in the first place, not even knowing if Jack was even here. Deep down, in a place Jack would never admit, Tim’s tears for him actually seemed to please him, seeing his brother actually worked up for him when Jack was convinced Tim no longer cared for him after what happened between them. Jack let out a soft smile, softer then he would ever admit, and only for a moment. Being with his brother again felt right.

“So you came here to put me to rest huh?” Jack finally chimed in, Tim nodded, “Well good fucking luck, I have no idea how you’re gonna do that, I don't even feel that restless.” Jack sighed. Nisha decided it was finally a good time to pipe in.  
“Well, the most common ways are just to resolve whatever unfinished business you have, then destroy whatever is rooting you to this mansion,” Nisha explained.  
“Well, I have no idea what that is,” Jack stated bluntly, and Nisha sighed.  
“Guess we’re gonna have to do it the hard way then.”  
“And what’s the hard way?” Tim asked  
“We’re gonna have to root through everything in this house for anything that looks even remotely old and intact then destroy them all one by one.”

**\-- 6:25 pm, 5 minutes remaining --**

“Why do you have so much crap!” Nisha groaned, they hadn't even made it through the entire library, this was going to take forever!  
“Sorry, I’m rich and like nice shit!” Jack called back annoyed as he searched the room as well.  
“You should be!” Nisha retorted, throwing an old ass book behind her.

**\-- 6:26 pm, 4 minutes remaining --**

Rhys finally woke up from his nap only to find himself utterly alone. Rhys let out a sad hum as he made his way out of the room, looking for where ever Jack might have gone to. It probably wasn't far, he didn't like to leave the house at all. Plus it was really stormy outside. Rhys looked at the harsh blizzard that had formed, something about it seeming… so familiar…

**\-- 6:27 pm, 3 minutes remaining --**

“Hey, Jack?” Tim called out, rooting through more brass statues and filing them over in his ‘maybe’ pile.  
“Yeah, Tim?” Jack asked, glaring at a candlestick much more viciously than it probably deserved.  
“The blog post I saw about this place that led me to you mentioned a second ghost, a smaller one?”  
“Oh! Yeah! That would be Rhys, the little ghostlet.” Jack replied, Nisha perking up at the mention of the second ghost. “He’s a tiny little thing, doesn't remember anything about his past but he perky as hell. He can even move shit and stuff, which is pretty annoying but I’ve gotten used to it.” Jack continued on as Nisha slowly stopped what she was doing to pay more attention to Jack’s description.

**\-- 6:28 pm, 2 minutes remaining --**

Rhys yawned as he wandered over to the main entryway, looking around for his best friend and roommate but found nothing, he let out a small sigh as he went to find something to do before once again being drawn back to the strange body on the staircase Jack had told him was his. He was being drawn more and more toward the body, his interest slowly growing as time went on.

The storm raged on outside, the body and the storm stirring something within… something…. powerful.

**\-- 6:29 pm, 1 minute remaining --**

“He wouldn't happen to be able to possess small animals and start fires would he?” Nisha asked cautiously. Jack looked over at Nisha with an expression that was definitely a relief.  
“You know what he is?”  
“Yeah, from what you’ve described he’s probably a poltergeist.” Nisha responded, “That's usually pretty concerning, but, if he hasn't done anything super bad by now he shouldn't. Well unless…” Nisha trailed off shaking her head of the thought.  
“Unless what?” Tim asked.  
“I mean unless he touches his corpse. But that's not gonna happen.”

**\-- 6:30 pm 0 minutes remaining --**

Rhys was overcome with the overwhelming urge to touch the body as if it would answer questions he didn't even know he had. He floated closer and closer to the body. Its smile was so warm and inviting.

**\-- 6:30 pm, 0 minutes remaining --**

“Umm, it might be a bit more likely then you think…” Jack trailed off. Nisha immediately fixed the ghost with a hard stare,  
“What?”  
“Well, you know that body on the staircase…”  
“Oh dear-” Nisha was cut off by the loud sound of compressed air beginning released violently somewhere in the house, accompanied by the entire house shuttering  
“What was that?” Tim stuttered  
“That,” Nisha stated, “Was the sound of my fee doubling.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *whispers* Chaos shall reign

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this you please let me know with a comment, I reply to every single one and it would mean the world to me if you did so!


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